Paper plates, a 19 hour finish, and the triathlon state of mind

2006-09-26T09:42:00.000-05:00

This story represents all that is good about triathlon and endurance sports in general. Below are the words from a proud father of a volunteer at a run aid station on the 2nd Annual Redman iron-distance triathlon:
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"After leaving the medical tent sometime after midnight, I drove to R5 to pick up my daughter, Rachel, who was responsible for the "high school kids" at that run station. She is a senior in HS and wanted to volunteer because her daddy was doing the race ("only" the half). She and her unruly and mottley crew were there all day and night. When I went to pick her up at 12:30-12:45, she was sitting on the run path at R5, waiting for DanMan, the last runner. I said, "Rachel, we have to go home now". She said, "I'm staying for the last runner; he's so nice". But mean old dad that I am, I made her leave. So, she had already set out food and gatorade and water and lots of goodies for Dan, all on paper plates, and she had written on those plates, all from her heart. She felt the "state of mind" and wrote that Dan and all the athletes were a total inspiration to her and her peers. She personally identified with many many of the athletes and wrote that Ironman (and triathlon) is a state of mind. It was tough for her to leave that night because she wanted to see Dan through, but when I got home from the awards brunch and told her Dan finished [in over 19 hrs!] and looked GREAT that day, all was well with her. She never thought the paper plates would make it through the night; she was certain they would be tossed, run over, or shredded by some animal. It just goes to show that the "little things" do go a long way and make a difference..."
--David Flesher

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As a participant in this remarkable event, this story moved me more than my own finish. These plates will forever be THE symbol of my first ironman experience, reminding me why triathlon is such an incredible sport: What other sport cheers the last place finisher as loudly as the first? With what other sport can a father inspire his high school daughter and her friends to sacrifice their Saturday (day and night) to hand water to sweaty old men? What other sport has a competitor that can influence a teenager not with drugs or alcohol, but with the Ironman "state of mind"!?

And to DanMan, Dave Wood (the RD), all the staff and volunteers at Redman, David and Rachel Flesher, my parents (Dan and Mary), and especially my wife, Sarah, I want to quote Rachel's plate: "Thank you being an inspiration to us all, reminding us that ironman is not a race, but a state of mind."

My First Ironman

2006-09-25T17:37:00.001-05:00

THE SWIM

My wife said a tearful prayer that touched my heart in way that can't be measured by a monitor. I knew at that moment, blessed by God, I'd be safe on this day. After hugging and comforting my smiling mother, the gun went off and we stormed the beach. We had to run about 100 yards in knee deep water before we got to swim depth. Before diving in, I took a split second to look behind me as if to say goodbye not to my family, but to my fears. This was IT. The start of something special. The enormity of the moment was tangible.

The wind caused me to get off course right from the get-go and after about a minute I realized I was sighting off the wrong buoys! Doh!! I corrected my self and barely rounded the north side of the second buoy. But the north wind kept steering me south, and I had to sharply correct my line back westward toward the next buoy after rounding the previous ones. It was quite frustrating.

I mentally recited "Dori's song": Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. And I did. I didn't start to get too tired until near the end where my form went to pot, and was really ready to get out of the water. It was great to see my family coming out of the water. I knew my wife would more be at ease now that I was out of the water.

Swim Time: 1:36:08 (with about 4 minutes of running in/out of the lake)

T1

Smooth and quick. A volunteer had my bag ready and dumped it all out right in front of my chair, just like I wanted. I changed clothes pretty quickly and was on my way. No problems!

BIKE

First thing I noticed was, "DANG, it's COLD!" Who would have thought it'd be cold in Sept!? I also didn't like that my HR would not come down below 160 until about mile 7 or 8. Even though I was riding real easy, I think my body had to keep my HR relatively high to try to warm itself b/c I was wet and riding into a stiff head wind. After it came down to the low 150s, I felt better and settled it for the long ride ahead.

After the 56 miler turnaround and the start of lap 2, the wind picked up to a sustained 16mph (with gusts up to 30mph) from the NW. I had to bring to bear all my mental energy not to think/dwell on the next 26 miles into the wind. I just kept trying to focusing on the present, not on this headwind and certainly on the marathon that was looming large. Take care of the present, and the future will take care of itself. This was one of the toughest times of the race for me, and I had to constantly remind myself to keep my HR in check and not to dwell on the wind, but to stay positive. "At least it's not hot, David" "Everyone's fighting the wind" "Your doing a good job of staying aero". "You've battled the wind before and won." One mile at time, David. I think that's the Ironman secret. 140.6 is too large to wrap your brain around. You have to break it down into manageable bites.

After turning around at about mile 90, we had now had a tail wind and a downhill that was the best part of the whole bike. Flying down it at 26mph buoyed my spirits instantly. Everyone told me that I experience high and lows, ups and downs throughout the day, and on the bike those mood swings were clearly defined by the wind. The head winds punished you, and the tailwinds were the reward for that beating!

My family did an awesome job of driving around the course to see me at many points. (See Sarah on the left.) I always got a huge energy boost every time I saw them. I wasn't alone out there in the wind. Their spirit and energy was with me...a helping hand on my back.

Bike Time: 6:30:29 for about 115 miles = 17.7 mph

T2
Another smooth transition, surprisingly. Another wonderful volunteer had my bag un-packed and sitting on a chair. I changed clothes and was off with little delay. I didn't even think about the beast of the run I was about to undertake!

RUN

I felt pretty good actually at the start. It was great to see my family there again and I heard the announcer call my name and that gave me a good send off into the unknown of 26.2 miles. All my long bricks must have prepared me well for this moment. I knew what to expect. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other. My HR was in check between 150 and 155, and my Polar S625X reported my pace to be about 10:30 - 11:00 min miles. Right where I wanted to be. My quads and ankle hurt for most of the run and got worse over time, but I could deal with that pain b/c I was really happy with the pace and HR I was able to maintain.

I reached the turnaround at 13.1 miles at about 2 hrs and 15 minutes into my run. At that point, I knew that if I could somehow run that again, I'd have an outside chance at breaking my open marathon PR of 4:31. I also knew that 13.1 miles is still a long way and that if I got my HR to high, I could easily get in trouble. So for a few miles, I was trying to walk (actually jog) a fine line between going too fast and going slower than necessary. However, I soon let go of worrying about my marathon PR and just, again, tried to stay in the moment...doing the best I could for each mile. I kept telling myself that the true measure of success is not a marathon PR or sub-13 finish, but if I could look myself in the mirror the next day and say I did my best through out! As long as I was "giving it my all", I knew I could hold my head high!

My parents are the absolute best. They made this incredible sign (left) with pictures of my sister, Cyndee, my dogs, and my close friends the Schayots. With that sign, I was always reminded that they were cheering me on from afar. Plus, Sarah would ring this cow bell so loud that I could hear it from a 100 yards away, beckoning me to continue. She actually got blisters from ringing it so much. Can you believe it!?

They would cheer on everyone too, not just me and it seemed that every runner I passed would tell me that I have the best cheering squad. I would say thanks and that they are the reason I'm still running strong!

After 20 miles, I was hurting but I tried to bump my HR up to 160 to see if I could maintain that and maybe sub 10 minute miles. Yeah, that lasted all of 3 minutes!

The last few miles were some of the toughest I've ever experienced. I wanted to slow down so bad. My quads were burning. My blisters screaming at me to stop. My ankles buckling in pain. If I slowed, I wouldn't be doing my best. Do your best, David. The pain let me know I was alive.

Mile 26! What a sight for sore eyes! I came onto the carpet, high-fived my wife, held my hands over my head and finished an Ironman! An incredible feeling, but in all honesty, I was hurting too bad to enjoy it as much as I would have liked. I would have loved to have sprint to the finish with a tears of joy streaming down my face like a fairy tale ending, but I had no more tears left. They were all on the course along with my sweat. But truth be told, it was a blur. I had given my it my all, and for that I'm not sorry. For me, Ironman is not about the finish line, but about the process and journey of getting there.

Oh and by the way, I set that marathon PR by 3 minutes (4:28), and finished sub-13, 12:43:17

What followed, I'm not proud of... I ended up in the medical tent for two hours getting three IV bags and shivering my butt off. I've never had to go to the medical tent or get an IV for any event before so this was rather humbling. I didn't realize I was so dehydrated because the cool, dry air was evaporating my sweat so quickly and I was feeling pretty good. However, I made the rookie mistake of sitting down right after I finished and I started to feel even worse... nauseous and short of breath. I went to the tent and they saw I was as pail as a ghost. They elevated my feet and start me on an IV, and the nausea immediately went away. But I couldn't stop shivering for about 1.5 hours! I felt pretty OK, but I needed to wait until I stopped shivering before they'd stop the IV.

I saved the best for last. No, not the 2nd place hardware, the incredible woman on the left, my wife Sarah. I could not have done any of this without her tireless support. She would always pick up my chores around the house when I was too tired after my long days. She'd never complain about me being gone every Saturday from 6am to 3pm. She always comes to my races and cheers me on. She's simply amazing and the love of my life. She is the engine that makes my heart beat strong. This finish is for her.

The Triathlon Experience

Paper plates, a 19 hour finish, and the triathlon state of mind

My First Ironman